Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/17/climate/japan-cherry-blossom-database-scientist.html From the post: >>For more than 1,200 years, Japanese noblemen, monks and bureaucrats have carefully recorded one of the most eagerly awaited days of the year — when cherry blossoms bloom in the ancient capital, Kyoto. In recent years, a climate scientist, Yasuyuki Aono, has been the keeper of this trove of dates, one of the world’s most remarkable and longest-running climate records. Cherry trees, or sakura, are particularly sensitive to changing temperatures, and as the planet has warmed, they have bloomed earlier and earlier.